Ice
by thegalaxsea
Summary: Oneshot. Draco is out alone on a winter day, appreciating the weather. Who does he come across, enjoying the frost just as much he is?


My first Harry Potter fic to actually post online - I've already written a fair few. And it features my favourite couple: Dramione! It may be a little OOC. I just quickly wrote up this oneshot from a one word prompt. Namely the title of this fic.  
>Isn't it so depressing? The Harry Potter saga is actually over! I can't believe it. I think I'm going to go procrastinate about the good times in Hogwarts now...<p>

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><p>Draco trudged through the thick layer of snow coating the entire Hogwarts grounds. There was no one else outside. Everyone was celebrating the winter festivities within the warming confines of the Great Hall. He shook his head. Everyone completely missed the beauty of the winter wonderland <em>outside<em>, opting instead to drink butterbeer and eat pudding around crackling fires. How could anyone truly celebrate winter _inside_?

All the trees and the Hogwarts castle were coated in a fine dusting of snow. It reminded Draco of gingerbread sprinkled with icing sugar. Remains of snowmen and snow forts were scattered around, once again displaying the true power of nature. Icicles glittered under the weak sunlight like diamonds. As he brushed against a mighty pine, a pile of loose snow dropped from a branch onto his head. A melodic laugh rang through the air, startling Draco. There was no one around. He cursed and took off his expensive fur cap from Bulgaria. He shook it out and placed the cap back on top of his platinum hair. He marched further through the snow, determined to find who the sweet laugh belonged to.

Draco walked towards the Great Lake. He always felt sympathy for the Giant Squid who was frozen under the water every winter. The poor sod was stuck under the ice during _Christmas _of all times. As he neared the lake, he heard the scuffing sound of metal on ice. He took a step closer and a wistful melody filled his ears, overpowering the hearty carols from the castle. The song was a glockenspiel tune, making Draco think of someone tapping icicles to create music. He took another step closer and squinted into the distance. His breath caught.

She was beautiful. A slender figure glided across the ice like a bird in flight. She was the Queen of Winter. She wore a sky blue – no _ice_ blue dress and snow white skates, scarf, mittens and sweater. Under her white beanie, shimmering brown curls trailed behind her. She danced across the lake, flowing with the music. All Draco could do was watch in awe. Well at least he wasn't the only one experiencing winter at its finest.

He longed to find out who this stunning girl was. He tapped his boots with his wand, turning them into a pair of black ice skates, and took off on the ice. As a child, Draco had begged his parents for skating lessons since he loved being outside in winter so much. Now he was extremely glad to have had that foresight. He certainly didn't want to look like a bumbling idiot on ice in front of _her_. He slowly approached the girl who was twirling on the spot gracefully. She slowed until her figure turned to him. He gazed into the chocolate eyes of Hermione Granger.

"Granger?"

"Malfoy?"

A poignant note struck the chilly air and faded into silence. The long-time rivals stared at each other with shocked but guarded expressions. Draco racked his mind for nasty things to say but none came. There was no way he could insult someone so perfect and ruin his perfect winter day. And frankly, all he wanted was to enjoy the frosty weather too.

"May I join you?" He asked tentatively. She stared at him, waiting for the punch-line. But none came.

"How can I be sure you have no ulterior motive for joining me alone?" She finally replied, more curious than accusing.

"I wouldn't venture out into the bitter cold, _without_ Crabbe and Goyle might I add, just to harm you, Granger."

She watched him intently, tilting her head slightly.

"But would you, now that you're here?"

Silence fell again. A snowflake drifted between them. Draco tried to fight the urge, he really did try his hardest, but he couldn't stop the ingrained habit which he started as a young child. He opened his mouth and caught the snowflake on his tongue. He saw Hermione give him an incredulous look. His cheeks flushed pink.

_Alright,_ Draco thought, _the only thing that would work with a Gryffindor like Granger is honesty_. He sighed, preparing to drop his cold mask.

"All I want is to enjoy the day outside like you. Those oblivious morons inside don't know what they're missing. I'm very fond of skating. So please_ Hermione_ let me join you." He gave her the most sincere smile he had ever given anyone. Her face visibly brightened, making his heart skip a beat. Draco scolded himself. He was acting as if he'd never seen a beautiful girl before. But then…Hermione wasn't just _any_ beautiful girl.

She extended her hand as an invitation, eyes full of warmth and lips slightly smiling. The Slytherin in him wanted her to feel just as nervous as he was. So he took her hand, slowly pulled her glove off, and placed a gentle kiss across her knuckles. He looked up and smirked at the rosy blush on her face.

"Come on, ferret," She huffed and started to skate, almost yanking his arm off. Draco yelped, nearly losing his balance as she towed him away. He managed to keep up with her fierce pace but he was starting to lose feeling in his left hand as she held it in a vice-like grip.

Gradually, Hermione's irritation died away to be replaced with a feeling of butterflies in her stomach. Draco noticed the same glockenspiel music starting to play; only this time with an accompanying harmony. He wondered whether it was a spell of Hermione's or if it was part of the magic of the lake. But he ceased to care when Hermione flashed him a beautiful, content smile. He gave her a shy one back - he wasn't used to this emotions business. He let go of her hand and they began circling each other in an intricate pattern.

As skilled skaters as they may have been, they had never skated with each other before. So soon enough, Draco found himself on a collision course with Hermione.

"Granger-!"

_Oof!_

He slammed into her petite figure and instinctively wrapped his arms around her waist. They fell hard on the ice, Hermione landing on top of Draco.

"Are you okay? Hermione?" He said urgently. She seemed as fragile as a statue of crystal…or ice. She grinned at the use of her first name.

"Of course I am. Are _you_ okay? You're the one who took the fall."

As Draco's initial panic subsided, he gave her a lopsided grin.

"Never better,"

Hermione chuckled breathlessly and Draco closed his eyes at feeling her breath wash over him.

"I guess we need more practise don't, we?"

Draco opened one eye to look at her hopefully. Was she hinting that this wasn't a one-off thing? Did she want to do this again?

"Yes, we were absolutely terrible. My mother would shudder at seeing me so clumsy." Draco hummed, stroking one of her wayward curls.

"I beg to differ. I think you are _very_ graceful…Draco."

The music, which had stopped when they crashed, played again. It echoed around the lake.

"Are you doing that?" Draco asked.

"You mean the music? No…I thought I was imagining it. I always hear it when I come here during winter…but Harry and Ron never did."

"Then it must be the magic of Hogwarts. There's always unexplained magic which happens around the school."

"But how come only we hear it?"

"Maybe…maybe it's because we're the only one who really appreciate the snow and winter; even when it's freezing cold."

Draco saw Hermione smile again and couldn't help himself. He tried to fight the urge, he really did try his hardest, but he couldn't stop the ingrained habit which he started as a young child. Only instead of catching a snowflake, he caught her lips with his.


End file.
